does anyone know a good pachydermatologist?

in writing the title, i realized:

• i know how to spell "pachyderm" correctly (why?! why would someone whose life is almost entirely elephant-free even know this??!)
• i do not, however, know how to spell "dermatologist" correctly ...and...
• even after all these computery years having spell-check, online reference sites, and google... when i need to determine what i do & don't know how to spell...i still, automatically, reach for the (physical, made-outta-dead-trees) dictionary. interesting.

anyway, said elephant was my contribution to jen's fabulous "transparencies" article yesterday on typicalifragilistic. today's piece, by the lovely & talented alecia, is about the wide range of inspirational ideas that can be gleaned from advertising of all kinds, and is well worth reading! (warning: if you will not be in a position to make something immediately afterwards, you might want to wait; i'm slightly peeved to be having lots of cool ideas now, when i have to go to work!)

(elephant clipart printed on inkjet transparency; text from a bengali newspaper; imaginesce patterned paper; creative imaginations rub-ons; jewelcraft gems; glitter glue)

...BUT...can i just say, after a week+ of laying on the floor nursing the back...i am pretty darn excited to be going to work! yeah, even on a monday! (don't worry, i'm sure this will pass quite quickly, once i get there!) :)

which just goes to prove if you ever want to torture a hyperactive person, making them lay around and do nothing is extremely effective! believe me, after about fifteen minutes, they will bend to your will. (i am trusting you, here, to use this newfound info only for good...and never for evil...)

ciao, darlings! happy monday!!!

micro...in every sense of the word!

woohoo, it's another fabulous CAARDVARKS mini-challenge! for this one, we can do whatever we want...BUT...finished cards cannot measure more than 2.5" by 3.5" inches. the challenge is called... (are ya ready? i loooooooooove this name!) ...

honey i shrunk the cards!!!

the DT got just slightly carried away with this one (you gotta see the gallery!) and...ok... i was no exception; four of those babies are mine! i don't think i've ever made cards as small as this, but now that i've started, i can see soooooo many uses for 'em: gift enclosures, tags, little notes that you stick in when you send packages or auction items...anything...

(making memories & vintage greeting card patterned paper; love elsie label; autumn leaves rub-ons; making memories flower; colorbox ink; characters from an old children's book)

(royal brush, basic grey, provocraft & love elsie rub-ons; sandylion sticker; jewelcraft rhinestones; scraps of cardstock)

(christina cole, basic grey & teresa collins patterned paper; bo bunny clear sticker; colorbox ink)

(making memories cardstock & wordfetti; character from an old children's book; unknown scrap of patterned paper)

the challenge runs until midnight tonight (9-16) so there's still plenty of time to get a-craftin'! fair warning, though, these little suckers are addictive! betcha can't make just one!!!

PS: on typicalifragilistic today, jenyfur shared a great way to make your own *custom* transparencies...and then the rest of the gang has also chipped in with our ideas too--so if you wanna see the whole group in action--head on over!

PSS: the scrapdragons' fourth challenge went up yesterday, and it's a realllllllly cool sketch challenge! plus, there's still plenty of time to enter my very own DRAGON CARD challenge, too!

today is allllllllllllll about...

***typicalifragilistic***

yepper, it's the BIG LAUNCH

and of course

we're really, really, really excited!

...rumor has it...that the honor of the first post belongs to...

ummmmmmmmmmm...ME??!

(are you *sure*??!)

ok, the VERY first post is from

jen

our lovely founderess

but then, the first feature

that'd be

ME!

it's about my little "3BT" book that i made in july...'member that?

well, it's still a-goin'

but lemme shut up...and just send you to

***typicalifragilistic***

it came from the attic (of doooooooom!)

in addition to enough cardboard boxes to supply elementary school children everywhere with dioramas in perpetuity AND the world's third foremost collection of cobwebs; last week, up in the attic, i found this:


it was in with my grandmother's sewing machine & accoutrements. the machine itself is a 1970's sears kenmore no-frills model that i use...well, once in a blue moon b/c i'm crappy at sewing (yes, even on paper!) and it's heavy as lead. the rest of the supplies were pretty standard: thread, replacement needles, extra bobbin thingies, and a button-hole-making attachment that i am never, ever, going to figure out, much less use. (count this as fair notice, darlings: should the future of the free world itself depend upon *me* successfully making buttonholes, we are OUT OF LUCK!) (...on the other hand...i have some o' that self-adhesive velcro stuff...)

the "pearl re-stringing outfit" is sitting on my desk now, with some of my other treasures-- postcards, of course, both new & vintage; a little notecard that jen made; a gluestick that has a cowboy hat & boots on it (from my friend beshka, in texas); some adorable red felt cherries--for reasons that utterly mystify lovely husband jeff. i've tried to explain why i love it...and things like it...and i always fail. "look at the graphics...and that cool font!" i say, with an excitement that lhj would reserve for money found on the street; "isn't it cool that they sold a set of two: one for pearls and one for heavy beads?!" when i get to the part about mom-mom having used one string, and saved the other...for several decades, apparently...i come closest to gaining his understanding, but really that's cheating a bit, because sweet as that fact is, if i had found this in your attic, i'd be just as excited!

but then, perhaps the loveliest thing about lovely husband jeff is: he doesn't have to get it...to get it! he just smiles, and says, "that's cool, hon!" :)

lookout, blogoshpere--HERE WE COME!

TYPICALIFRAGILISTIC:

Finding inspiration in the fragile, mundane, beautiful, outrageous and everyday things that surround us.Get ready to welcome a new addition to the blogosphere this Saturday, September 15th! I am pleased to announce the launching of a new inspirational, eclectic blog/e-zine for crafters! We'll be covering topics from journaling, craft supplies, new trends, photography, digi-tips, techniques & tutorials, gossip, entertainment, hip blogs, fresh artists with fresh styles, and whatever else we want to throw into the pot!

If you'd like to be a Guest Blog/Author email us at: Typicalifragilistic@gmail.com

yepper, it's a completely new & super-cool project from the amazing minds of jen and nathalia! they have rounded up a whollllllllllllllllllllle bunch of smart, funny, talented, creative, and just generally all-round-rockin' crafty blogger gals, like sandra, leah, kim, elisa, alecia ...plus a bunch more, too! ...oh yeah...and *ME*... (cue the sesame street classic: one of these things is NOT like the others...lol!) we are all super-excited about this cool new thang, and hope you will come & visit us...OFTEN!!! we're hoping to be a kind of crafty, bloggy, *HANGOUT* where people like to come and not just read what we're doing, but share what you're doing, trade ideas & tips...and maybe a little gossip :) ...congratulate & console each other, and just generally belong...in a group of folks who get it!

it kicks off on saturday--yippeeeeeeeeeee!

step AWAY from the telly!

my back has been out for a week. it's quite a bit better now; tonight i make my triumphant return to the chiropractor's office, where i hope he will put an end to this little episode! but in the meantime, laying on the living room floor in a moderate amount of pain, there is not a whole lot to do...except read magazines (my attention span for books has now finally *begun* to return) …and watch way, way, waaaaaay too much television. in consequence, here are a few things i am pondering:

1. *who* watches wwf wrestling? no, seriously. i need to know. and if any of them are over the age of 16, we must round them up and send them to de-programming camps. (they'll thank me later...you'll see.)

2. what’s the deal with all these real-life daytime courtroom shows?! there are like 15 of them–and i honestly can’t see how even *one* survives. if i had i time machine, i’d go back & strangle judge wapner at birth, just to prevent the entire trend.

3. speaking of time machines, the doctor who spin-off torchwood started on bbc america this past weekend & it is WONDERFUL! if you are even vaguely sci-fi based (liking buffy or angel would qualify) you must watch it! (this is not a puzzlement; but talking about tv reminded me to mention it.)

4. are we thinking that grown women (or men) could actually find justin timberlake sexy????! he looks *12*, tops. even with the incipient receding hairline.

5. "proven medical advances have been made in the field of nicotine addiction” says the commercial. uh huh, and they were made by tobacco companies attempting to produce cigarettes which were EVEN MORE ADDICTIVE!!! yep, those would definitely be the people to whom i’d turn for help to quit smoking!!!

6. the medications for restless leg syndrome may cause "increased gambling, sexual, or other strong urges"????! ...ok, now see, i think it's safer if only my *LEGS* are restless...

7. exactly what beverages were being served at the meeting in which the viva viagara commercial was approved, and are there recipes available online? seriously, the first time i saw it, i thought i’d inadvertently changed channels and come upon an episode of SNL featuring cast members i’d never seen before. (that faint but persistant whirring noise you can hear in the distance? that's elvis spinning in his grave!)

8. is a guest spot on walker, texas ranger the punishment for anyone who's flunked more than three consecutive classes at drama school? ...not a bad idea, really...just the threat alone would totally make me buckle down to my studies!

9. does dawg the bounty hunter not have a mirror??! hello!!!!! those folks from what not to wear need to stop harrassing soccer moms and get their skinny heinies over to dawg’s house, pronto. (would that be the crossover episode of all time or what?!)

and now, sadly, having sat at my desk for upwards of 15 minutes, it is time for me to return to my televisual prison! but i'll leave you with this thought:

if it came to a physical fight, i'd wager a modest sum that judge judy could kick dr. phil's ass.

ciao, darlings!

fun with fungus!

we visited my in-laws on saturday, who live near kennett square, pa: mushroom capital of the world! they took us to rockee's mushroom outlet. yes, i was surprised to read, "mushroom" and "outlet" next to each other...but it's just their own little shop where they sell the surplus mushrooms that aren't promised to stores and restaurants. we bought their GIANT "gourmet assortment" which had a pack each of the absolutely freshest and most beautiful portabella, crimini, shitake, maitake, grey oyster and yellow oysters--all for $10.25!!!

during this trip, i discovered that my mother-in-law does not like mushrooms. not at all. not even a little bit! (she was actually bordering on wigged-out-ness when she saw the maitakes and the yellow oysters. "are you sure those are good?" she asked the girl who was packing them...several times...) how have i known this lovely woman for 20+ years and not realized??! i was quite embarrassed until i realized that her son...my husband...didn't know, either! (how do men do that??!) i spent much of the rest of the day mentally scrolling through meals we have served her over the years, searching for fungus-based delicacies.

yesterday, at home, lovely husband jeff made the world's most rich & lucious mushroom soup (with a recipe from--wouldjabelieve--cooking light magazine!) and a batch of wild mushroom risotto for later in the week. mmm, mmm, mmmmmmmm! ...although i will definitely file these under "do not serve to jeff's mom" in our recipe file...

whilst at rockee's i picked up these little mushroom character stickers...which totally cracked me up!

turns out they--and some of their cohorts--are also the subject of coloring pages on rockee's website, and can be found here! :)